


The One Where Everyone Gets Married

by heresyourchecksir (irongirl4597)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Accidental Marriage, Engagement, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Marriage of Convenience, Secrets, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-11
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-23 15:32:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9663692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/irongirl4597/pseuds/heresyourchecksir
Summary: “Wait, what?” Bitty asked, glancing around the room at the guilty faces. No one met his eye or seemed willing to speak up. “Are all y’all married?” A couple of seconds passed before everyone nodded.Jack and Bitty just got engaged, but it appears they weren't the first of their friends to do so.





	1. What Do You Mean 'You're Married'?

Bitty looked nervously around his living room at the former and current members of Samwell Men’s Hockey team. Ransom and Holster sat together on one side of the couch, tossing popcorn into each other’s mouths in increasingly ridiculous ways. Shitty and Lardo sat on the love seat at the side of the couch, calling out random point values for the popcorn catches and totaling the points. Chowder and Farmer sat on the other side of the couch, cuddling and watching the old episodes of Star Trek that played quietly on the TV. Dex and Nursey sat on the floor, bickering about who was a better captain, Picard or Kirk. Beer bottles and empty pie plates cluttered the coffee table. Bitty slowly took a calming breath and glanced at Jack, who sat with his arm around him in their other love seat. Jack stared back, his gaze soft and supporting.

“Should we tell ‘em?” Bitty asked quietly, his heart hammering in his chest. “Or should we wait a little longer?”

“Whenever you’re ready, Bits,” Jack whispered back, squeezing him gently. A quick flashback to his junior year flashed through Bitty’s mind. He smiled at Jack and cleared his throat.

“Y’all,” he started. He waited until all eyes had turned to him, “we have something to tell you.” He lifted up his left hand, the thin silver band glinting in the light. He waited with baited breath during the moment it took a moment for their friends to process it. The room erupted into chaos. Popcorn flew through the air. Several different hands immediately grabbed Bitty’s to get a better look at the ring. A high pitched squeal came from somewhere, probably Chowder or Holster. Bitty beamed at Jack, who smiled back and kept a firm grip on Bitty’s hips to keep him from falling off the chair as their friends enthusiastically congratulated them. 

“Thanks y’all!” Bitty said, smiling like the sun at all of them.

“So, when’s the wedding?” Lardo asked, her cool smile full of pride.

“We haven’t decided yet,” Jack answered.

“Not durin’ the season. And not until after playoffs,” Bitty said. “I want to be the only thing he’s focusin’ on that day.”

“I can’t believe someone in our group is getting married!” Chowder exclaimed excitedly, gripping Farmer’s hand tightly. Everyone chuckled softly.

“Yeah, well, too bad we aren’t the first,” Jack said casually. The room fell dead silent.

“What do you mean?” Ransom asked nervously, eyeing Holster.

“What he means is that someone in this room is already married. We know, whether or not everyone else knows,” Bitty elaborated, pointedly not looking at Shitty and Lardo. 

“Are you mad?” Chowder asked, his guilty face glancing back at an equally guilty looking Farmer.

“Not particularly,” Bitty admitted. “It was a spur of the moment decision, after all.” At this Nursey started coughing, causing blushing Dex to gently pat his back. Bitty glanced around the tense room, which had been perfectly normal only a minute ago.

“Are y’all okay? You’re actin’ weird,” Bitty said. The room dissolved into chaos again, with everyone speaking at the same time.

“We meant to tell you but-” started Chowder, looking like a kicked puppy.

“It was a good idea at the time-” Holster said defensively.

“Brah, we invited you-” calmly reminded Shitty.

“It was hard enough getting our parents there-”

“Because we were already living-”

“So that you woul-"

“IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!” a red-faced Dex shouted over the noise, silencing everyone.

“Dude…” Nursey said, shaking his head.

“Wait, what?” Bitty asked, glancing around the room at the guilty faces. No one met his eye or seemed willing to speak up. “Are all y’all married?” A couple of seconds passed before everyone nodded.

“Since when?” Jack asked, looking around at everyone in confusion.

“After graduation,” Ransom admitted, pointing to himself and Holster.

“Just before playoffs,” Chowder said, showing matching rings on his and Farmer’s hands.

“Spring Break,” Nursey said coolly, nodding at Dex before looking expectantly at Shitty.

“December,” Shitty admitted casually, bumping his shoulder into Lardo.

“But we’re not here to talk about us,” Holster tried to deflect. “So, which one of you proposed?”

“Oh no mister. Don’t think you’re getting away from this that easy.” Bitty crossed his arms in front of his chest. 

“Don’t you want to tell us who proposed?” Nursey gave Bitty his best puppy eyes. 

“Not until I know exactly how all of you ended up married before me. I didn’t even know most of y’all were datin’,” Bitty said firmly, triumphing over the puppy eyes. “Now, who’s gonna go first?” 

“I say whoever got hitched first goes first,” Lardo suggested, nonchalantly taking a sip of her drink.

“Great idea Lardo!” Bitty looked expectantly at Ransom and Holster. The two of them shared a guilty yet smug look before turning back to the group. Holster started the story.

“Look, it all started after we moved in together after graduation…” 


	2. Broly Matrihomie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The story of the wedding of the two best bro's forever, Ransom and Holster.

“Hey Ransom, bro, have you seen my gl-” Holster shouted from the his bedroom, where he searched his bed for the missing glasses.

“They’re in here on the table!” Ransom called back from the living room, not looking up from his computer screen.

“Thanks,” Holster said, coming into the room and sitting next to Ransom, grabbing his glasses, “fuck glasses.” He glanced at Ransom’s computer screen and saw an excel spreadsheet covered in dollar signs followed by long strings of numbers. “What'cha workin’ on?”

“Financial aid. We have to have our plan submitted in a month,” Ransom switched tabs over to his med school’s financial aid page.

“Holy shit brah, that’s a lot of money,” Holster said, staring at the increasingly expensive prices.

“It helps that I’m not living on campus, but it doesn’t help that I’m a Canadian citizen. They like to jack up the prices for foreign students,” Ransom said, scrolling down the page.

“You could try to become a us citizen,” Holster suggested, then frowned, “but it might not go through in time. With preping for and then taking the test, and then there’s the time it takes of the paperwork to get processed”

“Yeah. Even though I know everything that would be on the test, it still would take too long to process,” Ransom said sadly. An idea popped into Holster’s head as he continued to look at the financial aid screen.

“I mean, it’s not the only way to become a US Citizen,” he said, staring at the ‘spouse package’.

“What do you-” Ransom noticed what Holster was staring at. “Oh.” He considered it for a moment. “I don’t know bro. I don’t think it’d work.”

“Why not?”

“Well, for one, they have tests and junk to make sure you aren’t just marrying someone to become a citizen. Secondly, it’d still take tons of time for the paperwork to get processed, and thirdly, I’d have to find someone who would want to marry me,” Ransom pointed out, counting on his fingers as he said it. “Also, I’m not sure I want to give up my canadian citizenship.”

“Okay. But say you don’t get married for the citizenship package, but for the marriage package. It’d still make your loans hella cheaper,” Holster reminded him.

“Good point, but then we’re back to finding a person to marry me. Cause I’m not just gonna marry some random person off the street. I wanna marry someone I actually get along with,” Ransom said adamantly.

“Bro, I’d marry you,” Holster said nonchalantly.

“You would?” Ransom asked in shock.

“Yeah. And it wouldn’t even be all that suspicious. We already live together and spend a ton of time together, so we would hardly raise any red flags at the immigration office,” Holster said. Ransom considered it for a moment. The longer he thought, the more it sounded like a possible idea.

“I think we could actually do that,” he said, “but you’re my best bro. I don’t want to mess that up.”

“Bro, nothing's gonna change except we’ll be married. We don’t even have to change our names,” Holster promised. Ransom smiled.

“Okay then. Let’s get married!”

***

Two weeks later Ransom stood at the back of a small church with Holster standing only a few feet behind him. His parent’s stood on either side of him, chatting pleasantly with the Birkholtz’s. Ransom smiled to himself, thinking about how easily each side accepted his and Holster’s decision. In fact, no one seemed surprised in the least bit. Their mothers immediately started planning the wedding, much to the embarrassment of their sons. But Ransom and Holster couldn’t blame anyone but themselves for that. It was their choice to tell their parents on a group skype call. Ransom heard the first few notes of Pachelbel's ‘Canon in D’ start up and felt his father gently grip his arm.

“You ready son?” he asked, a twinkle in his eye. Ransom nodded. His mother laid her hand on his other arm and they began walking up the aisle. Ransom glanced at the pews, amazed at how many people made it despite the short notice. His aunties, uncles, sisters, and cousins beamed at him from the right, while Holster’s family watched them from the left. They’d all dropped everything and rushed to a random small church just to watch him and Holster get married. When Ransom and his parents reached the end of the aisle, he gave his father a hug and his mother a kiss on the cheek before they went to sit down. Soon after Holster joined him at the front, giving his parents a hug and a kiss as well before they went to join Ransom’s parents in the front pews. Holster grabbed Ransom’s hands, squeezing them gently as the pastor began to talk. Ransom barely heard a word the pastor said, heart pounding with the realization that they were actually doing this. Justin Olruansi and Adam Birkholtz were getting married in front of their families and-

“Do you, Justin Oluransi, take Adam Birkholtz to be your lawfully wedded husband?” The pastor’s voice cut through the noise of Ransom’s mind.

“I do,” he replied, his voice sounding much calmer than he felt.

“And do you, Adam Birkholtz, take Justin Oluransi to be your lawfully wedded husband?” the pastor continued. Holster smiled.

“I do.”

“If there are no objections, I now pronounce you husbands. You may kiss the groom,” the pastor ended with a smile, looking at both of them. Ransom panicked. He’d forgotten about the kiss! He tried to organize his thoughts, but failed when he felt Holster’s chapped lips press to his. Though they had kissed before, everything from playful pecks to making out with each other in a drunken stupor that they had vowed never to speak of again, everything about this kiss felt different, as if it held the weight of what they just did behind it. Nothing more than a light peck, lasting only a few seconds, but everyone cheered for them. When Holster pulled back, he smiled at Ransom, who returned with his own.

“Bro, we’re married,” Holster said so only Ransom could hear him.

“‘Swasome,” Ransom replied, giving him a fist bump.

* * *

 

“So y’all got married for money?” Bitty said, sounding unimpressed.

“Basically yeah,” Holster said, “but it’s also comes with other benefits that are kinda nice. Isn’t that right, Ransypoo?”

“Yes, Holtzy,” Ransom agreed, kissing Holster’s temple. The whole room blinked and shook their heads.

“Alright, fine,” Bitty said, rolling his eyes. “Who’s next?”

“I think probably us?” Shitty said, gesturing to himself and Lardo.

“Okay. Go ahead,” Bitty said, crossing his arms and leaning against Jack.

“Bits, you were there. Do you really want to hear about it again?” Lardo asked, trying to convince him to change his mind while keeping her cool.

“I may have been there, but the rest of them weren’t. So why don’t you just tell them how it happened?” Bitty suggested, his tone slightly stiff. Lardo rolled her eyes and tried to look annoyed, but the faint blush on her cheeks betrayed her.

“So, what happened?” Chowder asked.

“Well, it was nearing Harvard’s Christmas break...” Shitty began.


	3. It's the Most Shitty Time of the Year

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shitty and Lardo got married, and no one was high?

Snow fell softly outside the window, swirling gently as the wind crashed against the building. Lardo sat watching it, trying to figure out the best way to capture the image in paint. She glanced over at the other two paintings for the winter set she’d been commissioned to do; one the image of a frozen over pond with cuts made by skates, the other the soft glow of christmas lights covering trees. The person who commissioned the paintings wanted a set of three ‘winter’ pieces to hang in their home. The first two had come easily enough, but the third one escaped her grasp. Before she could give too much thought as to why, she heard the distinct creak of the apartment front door. She smiled to herself, knowing what was about to happen next.

“Hey Shitty,” she called toward the front door as she turned to face it.

“Hey Lardo,” Shitty called back, dumping his school books on their couch. He came into her studio/their guest bedroom and plopped down into the bean bag chair they permanently left in the corner.

“How was your day?” Lardo asked as she dipped her paintbrush into the slate-grey paint.

“Same as always. Except Trustfund McRichshit decided to take a whole forty fucking five minutes out of class to wax poetic about why Trump’s administration is going to be good for us, us being the white, male, upper class,” Shitty sighed and ran his hand through his slowly growing hair, messing it up. “God, he’s exactly the kind of asshat I want to protect people from.” 

Lardo gave him a sympathetic look, knowing she couldn’t say anything to make him feel better. Shitty sighed again and stood up, going into the other room to grab his homework. He came back, sat in the bean bag, and cracked open his books, just as he always did. They sat there for a while, working in comfortable silence on their respective projects. The painting that had been so elusive for Lardo came easily, almost shockingly so. In no time she perfectly captured the swirling snow, effectively completing her commission. As she leaned back to admire her work, her eyes slowly drifted from her paintings to Shitty reading in the corner. He stared intently at the page, his eyebrows creasing in concentration while he tapped a pen on his chin. Occasionally he would glance at some of the papers on the floor next to him and write something down before looking back at the book. Lardo watched him for a few minutes, her smile growing as her chest filled with warmth. A thought popped into her head, a crazy, outrageous, outlandish yet inevitable thought. One that should probably scare her, but made her smile instead.

“Hey Shitty,” she said casually, causing him to look up expectantly at her. She fought to keep her face neutral. “Let’s get married.” Shitty’s eyes widened in shock. Lardo’s heart stopped for a second before he spoke.

“Are you sure?” he said, looking mildly concerned. “Because I’m totally down for it if you’re completely, 100% sure you’re sure.” Lardo rolled her eyes and let out a huff of laughter. She stood up, crossed the room, and plopped down into Shitty’s lap. She threw her arms around his neck and looked into his green, hope-filled eyes.

“Bertrand Sebastian Knight, I am 100% sure that I’m sure that I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so will you marry me?” Lardo asked, staring him down intensely.

“Hell fucking yeah!” Shitty replied, leaning forward to kiss her. They made out for a few minutes, hands roaming. Suddenly Shitty broke the kiss.

“Shit,” he said, looking off into the distance.

“What?” Lardo asked, carding her fingers through his hair.

“We’re going to have to invite my dad and my shitty grandparents to the wedding,” he said, looking up at her sadly. Lardo hummed and glanced down. The elder Knights and Lardo shared a mutual dislike for each other that both sides knew about.

“What if we didn’t have a wedding?” she asked after a minute.

“What, like, just go to city hall and fill out the paperwork?” Shitty asked back, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah. Why not?” she shrugged. Shitty contemplated it for a moment. 

“Okay,” he said, breaking out into a grin. “When do you want to do this?” 

“How’s tomorrow sound?” Lardo asked, smirking. Shitty pulled her down for another kiss.

“Perfect,” he said when they broke apart, his eyes twinkling happily.

***

“You’re doing WHAT?” Bitty’s tinny voice shouted over the phone’s speaker.

“We’re getting married,” Lardo repeated, “today.”

“And we need witnesses’ for it to be legit,” Shitty added, “so we thought we’d ask you two.”

“Now don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for the two of you, but don’t you want a wedding? And ain’t it a little soon to get married, seeing how you proposed yesterday?” Bitty continued in his gentle but commanding voice, with just a bit of hysteria sneaking in.

“Wedding’s are just society’s way of making the hard working person spend too much money on a single day and a bunch of frivolous shit like flowers and a $13,000 dress that’s only going to be used for that day and then will be either thrown out or hung in the back of a closet for 30 years,” Shitty said nonchalantly. Lardo nodded silently in agreement.

“Plus without one you don’t have to invite your family,” Jack said, seeing through Shitty’s explaination.

“That too,” Shitty admitted. 

“But… What about… I DON’T EVEN HAVE TIME TO BAKE YOU A CELEBRATORY PIE!!” Bitty complained, his voice on the edge of whining.

“Okay, we all know that’s not true. You make pies unrealistically fast,” Shitty pointed out.

“But-”

“Hey Bits, how about this: you come witness us get married and then we’ll all go back to your place and you can bake us a pie and be mad at us all you want,” Lardo suggested. Bitty let out a huff.

“Fine,” he sighed, “but y’all better hold a reception for everyone else at some point.” Shitty and Lardo laughed.

“Fine. See you in a bit.”

“See you,” Jack said as he hung up the phone. An hour and a half later the four of them stood outside Boston City Hall. 

“Hey there brother,” Shitty greeted, wrapping Jack in a hug as Bitty gave one to Lardo.

“Hey. You ready for this?” Jack asked him quietly, staring at him with a serious expression. Shitty just smiled and nodded.

“I’ve never been this ready for anything in my life,” Shitty said, looking at Lardo. Jack clapped him on the shoulder before turning to Lardo.

“Hey Lardo, nice dress,” Jack said, pulling her into a hug. When he let go she glanced down at the plain white, knee-length dress.

“Thanks. It’s one of the only things I own that doesn’t have paint on it,” she replied, smoothing a hand over it. 

“You both look lovely,” Bitty said, his eyes shining. Shitty adjusted his brown suit coat, the same one he wore to class everyday.

“Aw, thanks Bitty,” Shitty pulled him into another hug. “Now let’s get this show on the road.” They made their way to the City Clerk’s office and paid the $195 fee to get their marriage license waiting fee waived.

“Don’t worry, my dad’s paying for the wedding,” Shitty said smugly as he handed over the credit card. Lardo, Jack, and Bitty rolled their eyes and laughed. The clerk showed them to room 601 where they’d be married. The wedding only took 15 minutes, but Bitty cried regardless. After, they all went back to Jack’s apartment, where Bitty made them Strawberry Cream pie and French Silk pie, Shitty and Lardo’s favorite pies respectively.

* * *

   


“So you guy’s just decided to get married and not tell us? Bro, I’m hurt,” Holster said, looking scandalized.

“You did the same thing,” Lardo pointed out, raising an eyebrow, unimpressed.

“That’s because we did it for financial aid money,” Ransom replied as if that made it better.

“Hang on, do your parents know?” Dex asked.

“Yeah. We took my parents out to dinner the next day and explained everything. They were okay with it,” Lardo said with a shrug. “My mom was actually relieved she didn’t have to go dress shopping with me and Shitty’s grandma.”

“We told my mom pretty soon after that. But we waited until my grandparents started acting like the shitheads they are at the family christmas party to tell them that we got married. It was ‘swasome,” Shitty said, reveling in the memory.

“But y’all still need to hold a proper reception so people can celebrate with you,” Bitty insisted, giving them a stern look.

“We will Bits, chill,” Lardo said cooly. “Anyway, who’s next?”

“I think that’s probably us,” Farmer said, leaning her head against Chowder’s.

“Okay, so spill,” Lardo prompted, taking a sip of her drink.

“Well, I guess we should’ve told our story first, since I proposed before you and Shitty got married, but maybe that’s okay because we got married after you did. You see...” Chowder started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was basically a rewrite of one of my other Check Please fanfictions "Marry Me". I just love the idea of Lardo asking Shitty, and it being really casual.


	4. Isn't California Charming?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chowder and Farmer are really impatient but that's cause they're in love!

Chowder wiped his sweaty palm on his pant leg. He took a deep breath in and slowly let it out, listening to the air hiss between his teeth. He glanced down at his phone, where Farmer’s text reminded him that she was on the way. It’d only be another minute or two before she reached him. He patted his pants pocket, feeling the small box hiding there. He smoothed down his white dress shirt, he’s heart pounding at faster than when someone takes a shot at the goal in the last minutes of play. He began fidgeting with his teal tie, crumpling it between his fingers. At last he saw Farmer coming down the path, her smile bright enough to see from far away.

“Hey babe, what’s up?” she greeted, beaming at him.

“Happy Anniversary!” Chowder blurted, smiling back at her.

“Anniversary? Chris, our anniversary is in December,” she reminded him with a slight chuckle.

“The anniversary of when we started dating is in December,” he said, bouncing on his toes. “We met three years ago today,” he pointed at the ground, “right here.”

“Oh right! You and Dex literally ran into the volleyball team and knocked me over!” Farmer remembered with a fond smile. “You kept asking me if I was okay.”

“I really wanted to make sure you were okay,” Chowder said sheepishly.

“It was cute,” Farmer assured him, making Chowder blush. “Anyway, why’d you want to meet me here?” Chowder took another deep breath in. Now or never. He grabbed Farmers hands.

“Because.... Caitlin Farmer, you’re the most beautiful, wonderful person I have ever met. Crashing into you three years ago was the best thing to happen to me, so far. Even better than meeting Antti Niemi last summer. Every day I’m with you feels like the new best day of my life, and I want to keep having new best days for the rest of my life. So,” Chowder knelt to the ground. Farmer gasped and covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes shining.

“Caitlin Farmer, will you let me have the honor of being your husband?” He pulled out the box and opened it. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes! Chris! Oh my gosh yes! A thousand times yes!” she exclaimed, happy tears falling from her eyes. Chowder’s face broke into a million watt smile as he stood up and took the ring out of the box, sliding it onto Farmer’s finger.

“It’s the Shark’s colors!” Farmer noted, looking at the teal topaz gemstone that was set in a silver band. Chowder nodded enthusiastically.

“I thought you’d like that since I’m a fan of the Sharks and you’re a fan of the Sharks and Oh! What if we got married in the SAP center? That’d be ‘swasome! Oh, but we don’t have to worry about that now! I’m just so excited you said yes!” Chowder pulled his giggling fiance into a kiss.

“You’re right. We can think about that later,” she said, breaking the kiss and smiling mischievously at him. “Now let’s go celebrate!”

***

 

Even though Chowder knew he should focus on playoffs, he and Farmer decided they couldn’t wait. They took a long weekend just before playoffs started and went back to California, taking Dex and Nursey with them to be Chowder’s groomsmen. Their parents made all of the arrangements, taking their input from afar. They arrived on Friday, just in time for the Bachelor and Bachelorette parties their friends from back home decided to throw for them. On Saturday they got up early and started getting ready. They were married by 3 pm and celebrated late into the night. On Sunday, as Chowder and Farmer unwrapped wedding presents in Chowder’s parent’s house, Nursey leaned over to Chowder and whispered, “Bitty is going to kill you when he finds out that he wasn’t invited to your _wedding_.”

“I’ll make it up to him,” Chowder replied nonchalantly, distracted by his beautiful new wife.

* * *

 

“I’m not mad. I’m just disappointed,” Bitty said, giving Chowder a sincere look. Chowder gave him his best puppy dog eyes.

“We’re going to have a reception on our anniversary here, and you’re all invited,” Farmer said. “Bitty, would you be willing to make us an anniversary pie?” Bitty beamed.

“Of course, sugar! Anything for you two.”

“Wow Bits. Favoritism much?” Nursey said coolly, cocking an eyebrow.

“Well, they’re the only ones who seem like they feel guilty about not inviting me,” Bitty shot a glare at Ransom and Holster, who shrugged simultaneously in response. Dex had a coughing fit that sounded suspiciously like “Plus Chowder is your son”. Bitty ignored him, but Jack gave a slight nod of affirmation.

“Anyway, I think we have one more couple left?” Holster looked very pointedly at Dex and Nursey. Dex immediately turned fire engine red while Nursey rolled his eyes.

“Chill,” he said to no one in particular. “Bits, we’ll tell you, but you can’t get mad at us for not inviting you. It kinda wasn’t planned.”

“And just what does that mean?” Bitty looked at him expectantly.

“Remember how Chowder, Farmer, Dex and I took that trip to Vegas for spring break?”


	5. How to Nurse a Hangover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nursey and Dex got married... in Las Vegas. Don't trust kiwi shots, kids.

Nursey woke up with a ringing head, dry mouth, and something warm pressed against his back. He groaned and rolled over, wishing for the ringing to stop. After a moment he realized he could actually hear the ringing, coming from the phone. He leaned over the side of the bed, silently cursing the bar he went to the night before, and answered the phone. A voice told him he had a package waiting for him at the front desk and someone had been sent up to deliver it. Nursey hung up and sighed, not wanting to move but knowing he needed to. He pushed himself out of bed, tripped over his shirt from the day before, stumbled to the front door of the suite, and yanked the heavy slab of wood open.

“Good morning sir!” an overly chipper bellhop said a little too loud, making Nursey wince. “This was dropped off at the front desk for you.” The bellhop held out a manilla envelope.

“Uh, thanks,” Nursey said, taking the envelope.

“You’re welcome. Have a nice day!” The bellhop turned and practically bounced away. Nursey shook his head gently and closed the door before turning his attention to the envelope. 

_ ‘Maybe C and Farms got something last night,’ _ he thought, ‘ _ or maybe it’s the hotel bill. Yeah, it’s probably just the hotel bill.’  _ Nursey flipped it over and found his name, just as he expected to. ‘ _ Derek M. Poindexter-Nurse. Yep, there it is.’ _ Nursey did a double take. Poindexter? Hyphen? Nurse? A stone dropped to the bottom of his stomach. He ripped open the envelope and grabbed its contents, letting the envelope drop unceremoniously to the ground. He stared at the paper in his hands in disbelief, but there was no mistaking it. Marriage Certificate blared from the top of the page, followed by both his full name and Dex’s. Nursey rushed back to his and Dex’s shared bedroom and glanced at his bed for the first time since he woke up. Dex’s trademark red hair rested on one of the white pillows. Dex’s bed remained perfectly made, untouched since they’d arrived. As Nursey moved closer to the bed, he could see Dex’s face, still sleeping peacefully. Nursey didn’t want to wake him- partially because he looked so goddamn cute and peaceful while sleeping, partially because Nursey knew when Dex woke up he would be pissed as hell. To put off waking him a little longer, Nursey made his way to the kitchen area and filled up two glasses of water. He downed the first one and grabbed the second one, taking it into the bedroom and setting it on the table for Dex. Nursey placed his hand on Dex’s shoulder and gently shook him.

“Dex, hey Dex, wake up,” Nursey said as he shook. Dex groaned and rolled over in response. “Please man, you gotta wake up. I have to tell you something.”

“Unless someone is pregnant or dead, I don’t care,” Dex’s groggy sleep voice was muffled by the pillow.

“What about married?” That caught Dex’s attention. He sat up and squinted at Nursey, his eyes still covered in sleep. Freckles and imprints from the sheets covered his bare torso. His hair stuck up in every direction, making Nursey want to run his fingers through it. ‘ _ Focus Nurse’ _

“Who got married?” Dex asked, sounding much more awake.

“Us, apparently,” Nursey replied, crossing his arms.

“What?” Dex studied him for a second, trying to see the truth in Nursey’s words. “Nurse, I know we’re in Vegas, but that doesn’t mean you can wake me up with a joke like this.” Dex glared at him. 

“I’m not joking. Look,” Nursey handed him the certificate. Dex took it skeptically, but his eyes widened in shock as he read what it said. He looked up at Nursey and back down at the paper several times before speaking again.

“We’re married.”

Nursey nodded.

“You and I are married.”

Nursey nodded again.

“You, Derek Malik Nurse, and me, William James Poindexter, are married.”

Nursey nodded a third time. Dex was silent for a second.

“You never told me your middle name is James,” Nursey said quietly. Dex looked at him in disbelief.

“We’re married and THAT’s what you choose to focus on?” Dex half shouted at him.

“Dex, chill. I had, like, ten minutes to get use to this before you did,” Nursey said coolly, holding his hands up in defense. Dex seemed to begrudgingly accept that. Nursey cocked his lips into a joking smile and crossed his arms. “And besides, aren’t married couples suppose to know everything about each other?” Dex glared at him again. Nursey shrugged and sat next to him on the bed. 

“So what do we do now?” Dex asked after a minute, his tone unsure.

“We should probably get it annulled,” Nursey said, his heart falling a bit.

“Oh. Right.” Dex’s ears turned red. “Don’t we leave today?”

_ ‘Shit’ _ “Yeah. So we’d probably have to get moving,” Nursey said, not moving. 

“How did this happen?” Dex asked, running his hand through his messy hair, “I-I mean, when did this happen? What led up to it? All I remember from last night was going to that bar with the shots that tasted like-”

“Kiwi. Yeah. That’s all I’ve can remember too,” Nursey said, slouching down. A thought popped into his head. “Hey, don’t most marriages need witnesses?” 

“I think so,” Dex said, furrowing his brow and looking at Nursey.

“Who’s ours? It can’t be Chowder or Farmer, they were at the Sharks vs Aces game last night,” Nursey pointed out. Dex looked down at the paper to check and his jaw dropped for the second time this morning. 

“What is it?” Nursey asked.

“Our witness was Las Vegas Ace’s Captain, Kent Parson,” Dex mumbled, handing the paper back to Nursey. Nursey looked down at the certificate, where the name Kent Parson was undeniably printed on the witness line.

“Holy fuck,” Nursey whispered. “H-how?”

“I dunno,” Dex said in a daze.

“I’m gonna call Jack… or Bitty… or Shitty. They… They’ll know what to do,” Nursey said, starting to look for his phone. He found it miraculously plugged in and fully charged.

“I don’t know what’s weirder, the fact that we’re married or the fact that your phone is actually charged the morning after you got blackout drunk,” Dex mumbled, his eyebrow raising in humor. Nursey ignored him in favor of turning on his phone. A text notification from an unknown number popped up, so Nursey checked that first.

_ Hey, this is Kent Parson. You probably have a lot of questions, and I might have some answers. Give me a call when you wake up.  _ Sent 4:32 AM. 

Nursey immediately hit call.

“Who?” Dex asked as the phone rang.

“‘Lo?” came a very exhausted voice from the phone.

“Uh, hi, Kent Parson?” Nursey said nervously. Dex’s eyes widened in shock.

_ “How do you have his phone number?” _ Dex mouthed. Nursey shrugged.

“Yes?” The voice said.

“This is Derek Nurse, you texted me and told me to call you.”

“Ah, yeah, right. Hang on a second.” Nursey heard what sounded like bed sheets rustling, followed by a door opening and closing. Dex stared at him, waiting for answers.

“Did I wake you?” Nursey asked apprehensively. Forcibly waking up a hockey star other than Jack felt wrong.

“Yeah, but it’s fine. I was expecting it,” Kent assured him. “It’s kinda why I gave you my number.”

“Oh. Sorry anyway,” Nursey apologized.

“So, do you want to talk about this over the phone or in person?” Kent asked him, catching Nursey off guard.

“In person?” Nursey repeated for Dex, who looked like he was about to faint. “We don’t want to inconvenience you.”

“Naw, it’s fine. I forgot to pick up groceries last night anyway, so I can do that when I leave your place.”

“O-okay. Do you need the address?” Nursey asked, not believing what he had just heard.

“Suncoast Hotel, room 284, right?” Kent said.

“U-uh yeah.”

“Cool. I’ll see you in ten.” The call ended and Nursey fell face first onto the bed.

“So?!? What’s happening?” Dex shook him.

“Aces Captain Kent Parson is coming over right now,” Nursey said into the sheets. He felt the bed dip next to him where Dex fell onto his back.

“Holy Hell.” 

Nursey heard Dex attempting to take a deep breath, but gasping instead.

“Dex, you okay?” Nursey pushed himself to his elbows to get a better look at the other boy. Dex had his hands pressed to his forehead. His golden-amber eyes frantically flicked back and forth, as if searching for answers on the cream ceiling. His chest rose and fell rapidly, accompanied by a rattling sound. 

“Dex?” Nursey asked tentatively.

“Las Vegas Aces Captain Kent Parson is coming over to my hotel room to talk to me and the guy I have a… I accidentally married in Vegas…” Dex summed up in disbelief, continuing to hyperventilate. “I can’t… this… uh… whatthefuck,” Dex’s breaths got even shorter. Nursey snapped to action. 

“Hey, Dex, Dex, listen to my voice,” Nursey said, pulling Dex to a sitting position and kneeling in front of him. “I need you to breath okay? Just follow what I’m saying. Take a deep breath in.” Nursey waited as Dex sucked a breath in. “Okay, now let it out slowly.” Dex did as Nursey said. Nursey coached him through a few more breaths, until Dex finally looked calmer. 

“You okay bro?” Nursey asked, carefully sitting back down on the bed next to Dex.

“Yeah, it’s just a little… overwhelming,” Dex said, flicking a shy smile at Nursey. 

“No worries, dude. I’m right there with you,” Nursey gently punched Dex’s arm. Dex smiled at him again, sending Nursey’s heart fluttering. They sat there in comfortable silence for a minute.

“Kent should be here soon,” Dex remembered.

“Yeah,” Nursey said, then glanced down at his shirtless chest, “we should probably get dressed.” Dex looked down at his own chest and realized for the first time that morning that he also wasn’t wearing a shirt. They dressed quickly, neither boy saying anything until they had made their way out to the kitchen table. 

“Do you wa-” Nursey started.

“Do you thi-” Dex began at the same time. They both stopped. 

“You first,” Nursey said. Dex opened his mouth to say something just as they heard a knock on the door. Nursey and Dex stared at it for a minute, before the knocking repeated. Dex jumped out of his chair and rushed to the door, flinging it open to reveal Kent Parson.

“Hey,” Kent gave a two finger salute, “Poindexter, right?”

“Uh-huh,” Dex replied, staring at Kent in awe.

“Can I come in?” Kent asked awkwardly. 

“Oh, uh, yeah, sure,” Dex scrambled backwards, holding the door open for Kent. Kent nodded his thanks and makes his way towards the table, sitting opposite of Nursey.

“I’m-” Nursey started as Dex shut the door and sat next to him.

“Nurse. I remember,” Kent said, smirking. “You guys had quite the night last night.” Nursey and Dex exchanged confused looks.

“About that-” Dex said cautiously.

“What happened exactly?” Nursey asked. Kent let out a soft huff of laughter.

“What’s the last thing you remember?” he asked.

“Uh… kiwi shots at Crown Nightclub,” Dex said. Kent raised his eyebrow, mildly impressed.

“So you remember absolutely nothing,” he stated more than asked. Dex and Nursey simultaneously shook their heads. Kent leaned back in his chair and stretched, laughing slightly.

“Okay, I didn’t come into the story until later, but here’s what I could understand from your drunken babbling. You guys did several kiwi shots at the nightclub and then started dancing. At one point one of you kissed the other, and then there was more kissing, and then you apparently decided to get married. You guys literally ran into me after my game, and I decided to stick with you so you wouldn’t die. You’re wedding was very tasteful. Elvis was the officiant. Had I known you’d only been dating for a couple of hours at that point I would’ve tried to stop you, but by the time you guys told me the whole story it was too late. I got you guys back here and left my phone number just incase you didn’t remember what had happened,” Kent explained, then chuckled. “Good thing I did.”

“Hang on, you weren’t gonna try and stop us from marrying because we were drunk, but you would’ve tried to stop us if you’d known we’d only been together for a short time?” Nursey asked to clarify.

“Yeah,” Kent shrugged, “some of the best things happen when you’re drunk. And sometimes vegas weddings are the ones that last.” Nursey could’ve sworn that Kent’s ears turned pink.

“So… uh, you said you dropped us off here… you wouldn’t happen to know what happened after that would you?” Dex asked, his face turning red. Kent shrugged again.

“I assume you fell asleep soon after I dropped you guys off. Nurse was practically sleeping on my shoulder in the cab, and he collapsed into bed basically as soon as we got here. You took one look at him, commented on how cute he looks when he’s sleeping, and then went to cuddle him. I left after that. I figured you guys would be fine until morning.”

“Oh… okay,” Dex blushed further. The three of them sat there for a few minutes in silence.

“Well, if you guys don’t have anymore questions, I’m gonna head out. I still need to pick up some groceries before I head back to my apartment,” Kent said, pushing himself to his feet.

“Yeah, no. Uh, thank you... for helping us out. Both last night and today,” Nursey said, also standing. He held out his hand.

“No problem. And congratulations,” Kent shook Nursey’s hand, gave a polite nod to Dex and headed out the door. Nursey flopped back into his chair.

“Well, that happened,” Dex nodded, his ears still fire engine red and his head falling onto the table. Nursey gave him a minute to compose himself before speaking again.

“What was it that you wanted to ask before Kent got here?” Nursey asked, turning to Dex.

“I was just wondering if Chowder and Farmer know,” Dex said, turning his head just enough to look at Nursey. Nursey hadn’t even thought about that. In fact, he’d basically forgotten Chowder and Farmer were there, sleeping in the other bedroom.

“Shit… I don’t know,” Nursey said, running his hands through his hair.

“We-we probably shouldn’t tell them,” Dex said, sounding almost a little sad. Nursey looked at him for clarification. Dex’s blush spread from his ears to his cheeks. “Since we’re probably gonna get it annulled and what not.”

“Right,” Nursey said, his heart falling again, “probably for the best.” 

“What were you gonna ask?” Dex asked, picking his head back up.

“What?” 

“Before Kent got here. What were you gonna ask?”

“Oh,” Nursey rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, “I was gonna ask if you wanted coffee.” Dex laughed.

“God yes. I can’t believe we’ve been dealing with this whole thing without coffee,” Dex said, running his hands through his hair. Nursey let out a chuckle and moved to the kitchen to get started on the coffee. A few minutes later he poured the dark liquid into two mugs and served one to Dex before sitting next to him. Dex smiled up at him before taking a long sip.

“Aww, look Chris! Aren’t the love birds so cute?” Farmer’s voice came from behind them. Dex choked on his coffee and started sputtering. Nursey did his best to help him not die.

“So cute,” Chowder commented in the tone of voice he usually reserves for chirping opposing teams.

“So how’s wedded bliss?” Farmer asked as she walked over and stole Nursey’s mug of coffee.

“You tell me. You’re the ones on a honeymoon,” Nursey replied coolly as he continued to gently rub Dex’s back. Dex gasped for air, his eyes full of tears. Farmer smirked and sat down across from them.

“You know?” he croaked, throat burning from the coffee and coughing. 

“Yeah,” Chowder rolled his eyes and sat down next to Farmer.

“How?” Dex asked, his face red from both the coughing and the embarrassment.

“You kept sending us snapchats,” Farmer said calmly, sipping the coffee.

“Don’t worry, we screenshotted them all,” Chowder assured them, sitting down next to Farmer.

“Why?” Dex asked, genuinely confused.

“For proof,” Chowder said with a shrug.

“I’m pretty sure the marriage certificate we have is proof enough,” Nursey said, rolling his eyes.

“And blackmail,” Farmer smirked, taking another sip of Nursey’s coffee.

“Bitty’s going to kill you when he finds out he wasn’t invited to your wedding,” Chowder said, echoing what Nursey said a few months before.

“Shut it C,” Nursey said, ignoring Chowder’s smug look.

“We’re not gonna tell anyone. Since we’re getting it annulled, there’s no reason to,” Dex mumbled, sliding down in his chair and ignoring the doubtful looks Chowder and Farmer were giving each other.

* * *

 

“Good job not telling anyone, by the way,” Chowder said when they finished, looking pointedly around the room. “It’s been, what, 3 months?”

“Chowder, don’t sass them,” Bitty said, crossing his arms. “It took you even longer.”

“So have you guys gotten it annulled yet?” Shitty asked, directing the conversation back. Dex and Nursey looked awkwardly at each other.

“No…” they said simultaneously.

“We haven’t had much time, with practice and school and work and moving into the Haus,” Dex said, his expression neutral but his ears red.

“But it’s chill. We’ll take care of it,” Nursey said with an equal amount of coolness.

“Riiight,” Lardo said skeptically. Nursey and Dex pointedly looked anywhere but each other.

“So. All of us have told our stories. I think it’s you guy’s turn,” Holster said, looking expectantly at Jack and Bitty.

“Well you know how the Falcs won the Stanley this year?” Jack said smiling proudly at Bitty. Chowder gasped in excitement as everyone else watched in suspense. “It happened after that.” The whole room groaned as Jack and Bitty laughed.

“Come on man! Deets!” Shitty shouted, throwing some popcorn towards Jack. Bitty and Jack smiled at each slyly before Bitty started the story.

“Okay. Here’s how it went down...”


	6. A Bit Hijacked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack and Bitty finally reveal how they got engaged.

Bitty yawned and stretched as he made his way down the stairs to the kitchen. Early morning sunlight filtered through the window, casting a soft golden glow around the room. Even though Jack wouldn’t be at the Haus until that afternoon, Bitty still wanted to get their anniversary pie done. He figured that the more he had done before Jack arrived, the more time they would have for other things. He put on his favorite baking playlist and started getting the ingredients out for a maple peach pie, humming along as he grabbed each ingredient. So distracted by the music and his task, Bitty didn’t even notice the front door open. He didn’t hear footsteps or notice anyone until he felt a familiar pair of strong arms sliding around his waist and pulling him closer.

“Good morning, Jack,” he smiled, hugging the arms around his waist. Jack kissed the top of his head.

“Good morning, Bits,” Jack replied. Bitty turned around in Jack’s arms, wrapped his arms around Jack’s neck, and stared up into the blue eyes staring lovingly back at him.

“You’re here early,” Bitty noted, attempting to keep his face neutral. Jack leaned down and pressed a soft kiss onto Bitty’s lips.

“Happy anniversary,” Jack whispered when he backed away, leaning their foreheads together.

“Happy anniversary,” Bitty replied, unable to keep from smiling. Jack leaned down and pressed their lips together again, holding the kiss longer this time. He parted his lips and deepened the kiss, pressing Bitty back against the counter. They made out for a couple of minutes, and when they broke apart both were breathing heavily and smiling.

“Mister Zimmermann, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to distract me,” Bitty said, swaying slightly.

“Me? Never,” Jack replied, smiling sweetly.

“Well then, you’d better stop kissing me like that. Otherwise this pie is never gonna get done,” Bitty said, fake sternly.

“Like what? Like this?” Jack asked, dipping his head down to kiss Bitty once again.

“You know, I’m starting to think you don’t want this pie to get made,” Bitty laughed when they came up for air a few minutes later.

“I love your pies, Bits,” Jack said softly, giving Bitty an eskimo kiss, “but I love you more.” Bitty blushed bright red.

“You charmer,” he said, gently pushing on Jack’s chest. “I love you too. But I do want to get this pie done. Then we can do some fun things.”

“Let me help you,” Jack offered, releasing Bitty.

“Are you sure?” Bitty asked, raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend.

“Of course. It’ll be just like Professor Atley’s class,” Jack said with a shrug, then smiled, “only I have more experience now.”

“That you do,” Bitty giggled. Jack grabbed an apron from the closet and tied it around his waist.

“What would you like me to do, chef Bittle?” Jack asked in a faux serious voice. Bitty let out a laugh before giving him a task. They moved easily around each other in the kitchen, occasionally hip checking each other gently and stealing kisses. In no time the pie was assembled and baking in the oven.

“I can’t believe it’s already been two years since I first kissed you,” Jack said as they cuddled together on the lazyboy in the living room.

“I can’t believe I’mma graduate in a few days,” Bitty said, leaning his head on Jack’s chest.

“And move in with me,” Jack said, smiling down at Bitty.

“And move in with you,” Bitty said, smiling up at Jack. They kissed again, enjoying each other’s presence.

“Bits,” Jack said when they broke apart.

“Jack,” Bitty replied, stars in his eyes.

“Bits, I-” Jack was interrupted by the kitchen timer going off.

“Hang on a sec, sweetpea,” Bitty said, pushing himself off Jack to go retrieve the pie. Jack patted his pocket, finding the small velvet box still hiding there, a solid reminder of what he planned to do that day.

“The pie will need to cool for a bit, but then it will be perfect for eating,” Bitty announced as he entered the room.

“Let’s go for a walk,” Jack suggested, pushing himself out of the chair.

“What about the pie?” Bitty asked, glancing back at the kitchen.

“It will still be here when we get back,” Jack assured him, gently rubbing Bitty’s arm.

“Are you sure about that?” Bitty bit his lip in uncertainty.

“I am if you leave a note.”

“Fair enough. Alright. I’ll be right back,” Bitty said. He went back to the kitchen and hastily wrote a note, threatening death and loss of pie privileges to anyone who ate his and Jack’s anniversary pie. Bitty paused for a moment to repeat his proposal plan to himself. The first step passed without a hitch. In fact, Jack showing up early made it work even better. He took a deep breath, knowing he only had to wait a little while longer. He put a smile on his face and went back to the living room.

“Ready?” Jack asked, nodding toward the door.

“Absolutely,” Bitty replied. They walked slowly to and around Lake Quad, talking and reminiscing.

“Over there is where Chowder and Farmer met for the first time,” Bitty pointed out as he and Jack leaned against the side of a bridge. “And over there is where Nursey would make his leaf nest.”

“Are you gonna miss it here?” Jack asked, although he already knew the answer.

“Yeah. It’s been wonderful,” Bitty said sadly, before looking up at Jack, “but I’m going to something even better.” They stared at each other for a minute, barely restraining themselves from kissing.

“Bits,” Jack said, his heart pounding. He may have failed once already, but he knew he had to try again.

“Yeah Jack?” Bitty replied, beaming up at him.

“Bits,” Jack repeated, “I-”

“BITTY! JACK!! Hey!!” an enthusiastic voice called from behind Jack.

“Merde,” Jack mumbled as Bitty leaned around him to see who was shouting.

“Oh hey there, Chowder!” Bitty greeted brightly, waving.

“How are you guys?” the excitable goalie bounced up to them.

“We’re doing well! How are you?” Bitty asked. Jack schooled his face into one of enthusiasm rather than irritation.

“I’m ‘sawesome! I was just heading over to see Caitlin at the volleyball house. What are you guys up to?” Chowder asked, smiling big.

“We’re celebrating our anniversary,” Bitty told him in a hushed voice.

“Oh my gosh! That’s today! I forgot! Happy anniversary!” Chowder gushed quietly.

“Thanks, Chowder,” Jack said with a slight smile.

“Well, I’ll leave you guys to it. Don’t want to interrupt on your special day!” Chowder said, waving goodbye. Jack tried not to think bitterly about how he already had.

“You know, those two have been acting strange ever since playoffs,” Bitty noted as he watched Chowder hurry away.

“How so?” Jack asked, feeling his anger and nerves dissipate.

“They’ve just been much closer, I guess. I wouldn’t be surprised if they get engaged before they graduate.”

“Me neither. They’ve been over the moon for each other since they met,” Jack agreed. “Hey, why don’t we go get Annie’s?”

“Alright,” Bitty said, pushing himself away from the wall of the bridge, “We’re just strollin’ down memory lane today, aren’t we?”

“Haha, yeah,” Jack said, absentmindedly patting his pocket. They walked to Annie’s, just like they had many times before. Jack knew he couldn’t propose at Annie’s. It was too public, and there were always too many people. They ordered their coffees and sat at the table they use to sit at back before Jack graduated. When they finished and were ready to leave, they found two very excited girls blocking their path.

“Oh my gosh, are you Jack Zimmermann?” the first one, a brunette, asked.

“Uh, yeah,”Jack answered reluctantly, glancing at Bitty.

“Can we get your autograph?” the second girl, a redhead, asked.

“Sure,” Jack said, starting the search for a pen.

“And a picture?” the brunette asked, pushing herself closer to Jack.

“Maybe you could take it?” the redhead asked Bitty.

“Okay,” Bitty said, taking the girl’s phone. He stepped back and snapped a quick picture of Jack with his arms around the two girls. The redhead handed a pen to Jack so he could sign a pair of napkins, which the girls excitedly tucked away. They left chatting excitedly about meeting their favorite NHL player.

“Sorry about that, Bits,” Jack said after he and Bitty left the cafe.

“Don’t worry about it Jack. It’s nice of you to do something like that for your fans.” Bitty waved it away.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean it should have to take away from our time together,” Jack replied.

“Honey, honestly, don’t worry about it. As long as I’m with you, I’m happy,” Bitty said, but he knew the look on Jack’s face meant he was still worrying. Bitty took a deep breath in, knowing his next suggestion would take them to the next step of his plan. “Come on Jack, I know what will get your mind off it.”

“Oh really?” Jack asked, a sly smile playing on his lips.

“Yep,” Bitty said, popping the ‘p’. A few minutes later they stood in Faber, with mid-afternoon light filtering in through the windows.

“Fabner really is beautiful in the afternoon,” Jack said, gazing around in awe.

“Come on, I didn’t just bring you here to look at it. Let’s skate!” Bitty said, pulling Jack over towards the ice.

“Um, Bits, we have one problem,” Jack pointed at his feet. “No skates.” Bitty rolled his eyes and made his way over to the player benches, where he picked up two pairs of skates.

“They’re your old skates, but I sharpened them and I think they’ll be fine for just a little skating around,” Bitty said. Jack’s face broke into a grin.

“I love you,” he said, striding over and taking the skates.

“I love you too,” Bitty said, leaning up and kissing his cheek. “Now let’s lace up.”

After putting on their skates, they warmed up with a couple of laps, and then raced each other a few times, Bitty winning every time. At long last, Bitty decided to complete the final step in his plan.

“Jack, I wanna show you one of my old skating moves,” Bitty said, feeling the nerves kick in.

“Okay,” Jack said. Bitty started skating away, but Jack called out again.

“Bits, wait.”

“What is it Jack?” Bitty asked, skating back to him.

“Bits-Eric- you know that I love you,” Jack started.

“Yeah,” Bitty said, slightly worried but standing his ground.

“Bi-Eric, I love you so much. You’ve made me a better player, a better friend, and a better man, even before we started dating. I can’t imagine my life without you, so, Eric,” Jack knelt on the ice, pulling the ring box out of his pocket, “will you marry me?” Bitty looked at him in disbelief, causing Jack’s anxiety to spike.

“Goddamnit Jack!” Bitty exclaimed, a smile breaking out across his face.

“Um,” Jack looked around, “Is that a-”

“I mean yes! Of course yes! It’s just… well…”

“Well?”

“Well, I was gonna ask you!” Bitty said. He skated over to the benches and found the blue velvet box before skating back. “I had a whole plan, and it was going so well, but then you had to beat me to the punch!”

“But it’s a yes?” Jack double checked. Bitty took a look at his boyfriend-now fiance’s nervous face and immediately kissed him.

“Yes, it’s a yes. It would never be anything but a yes,” he said, gazing up into Jack’s eyes. He elbowed Jack gently, “Even if you did steal my thunder.” Jack let out a soft laugh as he plucked the ring out of its box and slid it onto Bitty’s finger.

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, my answer is yes too,” Jack informed him, causing Bitty to laugh.

“I love you sweetheart,” Bitty said, sliding the other ring onto Jack’s.

“I love you too,” Jack replied, sweeping Bitty into another kiss.

* * *

 

“You guy’s have been keeping this a secret for 4 days?” Holster asked in amazement.

“We kept our whole relationship a secret for 6 months from you guys,” Jack reminded him, deadpan.

“Speaking of secret, what about the NHL?” Dex asked.

“I was already planning on coming out before I asked him. Actually, I’m planning on coming out on my cup day this summer,” Jack explained. “I would’ve done it no matter what he said.”

“Of course, there was no way I was gonna say no,” Bitty assured them.

“You’re gonna make history,” Nursey said, sounding impressed.

“That’s s’wasome!!” Chowder added in awe.

“Thanks Chowder. But I don’t really care about making history. I just want to make Bitty happy,” Jack said, smiling at his fiance.

“Awwww” Bitty sighed and leaned in to kiss him.

“FINE!” The whole room shouted, a select few throwing popcorn as well. Jack and Bitty just laughed, happy to be surrounded by their closest friends, even if they did occasionally keep secrets.

  
_The End_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed it! Kudos and comments are always appreciated!  
> You can also find me at [heresyourchecksir](http://heresyourchecksir.tumblr.com/) on tumblr.


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